English is the primary language used in Australia. Yet their colourful vocabulary,
accent, phonetics system and slang ('Strine') can take a lot of getting used to.
In 1788, therewere about 250 separate Aboriginal languages spoken in Australia,
plus dialects. Today,only two thirds of these languages survive and only 20 of
them (eight per cent of the original 250) are still strong enough to have chance
of surviving well into the next century.In addition to these there are also the
languages of immigrants from Europe, the Middle East and Asia.
Since 1945 more than six million people from across the world have come to Australia to live. Today, more than 20 per cent of Australians are foreign born and more than 40 per cent are of mixed cultural origin. In our homes we speak 226 languages - after English, the most popular are Italian, Greek, Cantonese and Arabic.
English is the primary language used in Australia. Yet their colourful vocabulary,
accent, phonetics system and slang ('Strine') can take a lot of getting used to.
In 1788, therewere about 250 separate Aboriginal languages spoken in Australia,
plus dialects. Today,only two thirds of these languages survive and only 20 of
them (eight per cent of the original 250) are still strong enough to have chance
of surviving well into the next century.In addition to these there are also the
languages of immigrants from Europe, the Middle East and Asia.
Since 1945 more than six million people from across the world have come to Australia to live. Today, more than 20 per cent of Australians are foreign born and more than 40 per cent are of mixed cultural origin. In our homes we speak 226 languages - after English, the most popular are Italian, Greek, Cantonese and Arabic.